Introduction:

osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease that mainly affects patients older than 60 years. Clinically it is characterized by pain, rigidity, deformity, functional disability and deterioration of the perception of quality of life.

Objective:

to determine the perception of quality of life related to health in patients with osteoarthritis of the Riobamba canton.

Methodology:

descriptive, cross-sectional study performed on 1263 patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis. The Coop / Wonca questionnaire was used to determine perception of quality of life related to health; the HAQ-CU questionnaire to determine functional capacity and the Cronbach alpha coefficient to evaluate the internal consistency and reliability of the Coop / Wonca sheets. Pearson correlation was determined to determine the relationship between quality of life related to health and functional capacity.

Results:

average age of 65.31 years, predominance of females, age group between 56 and 65 years, involvement in knees (41,92 %), associated comorbidities (72.26 %) and moderate disability (41,57 %). Global values of quality of life superior to 22 points.

Conclusions:

osteoarthritis negatively influences functional capacity and perception of quality of life. The evolution time of more than 3 years, the presence of comorbidity and the location in knees and hands diminish the perception of quality of life. There is a considerable positive correlation between functional capacity and quality of life. The Coop / Wonca sheets are a very useful instrument to be applied in primary health care.

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